625 Shares in Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) Bought by Steele Capital Management Inc.

Steele Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waters Co. (NYSE:WAT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 625 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WAT. IMPACTfolio LLC boosted its position in shares of Waters by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. IMPACTfolio LLC now owns 803 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID boosted its holdings in shares of Waters by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers Inc. ID now owns 11,469 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $3,776,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Waters by 55.3% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 118 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waters by 3.9% in the third quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 1,180 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Waters by 35.2% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 173 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 94.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waters Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAT traded down $2.91 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $312.18. The stock had a trading volume of 37,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 403,255. The company has a 50 day moving average of $334.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $308.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.22. The firm has a market cap of $18.52 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a PEG ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.92. Waters Co. has a twelve month low of $231.90 and a twelve month high of $363.80.

Waters (NYSE:WAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $819.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $815.50 million. Waters had a return on equity of 81.30% and a net margin of 21.72%. Waters’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.84 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Waters Co. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Waters from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Waters from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Waters from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $298.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waters news, Director Linda Baddour sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.54, for a total value of $177,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,250 shares in the company, valued at $799,965. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Waters Company Profile

Waters Corporation provides analytical workflow solutions in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. It operates through two segments: Waters and TA. The company designs, manufactures, sells, and services high and ultra-performance liquid chromatography, as well as mass spectrometry (MS) technology systems and support products, including chromatography columns, other consumable products, and post-warranty service plans.